A Dream And A Nightmare
by bookfish
Summary: This is explaining what happens when Ponyboy is knocked out after Dally died. Ponyboy is having a dream and meanwhile Soda and Dally are trying to get him better. Rated Kpl in case of some minor violence future chapters.
1. He's Snapped, We're Worried

**A/N: This is my first outsiders story, so I don't want any flames, but writing advice is always welcome! I just love 'The Outsiders" and give all credit of it to S.E. Hinton, and some credit to taekwondogrl006 for inspiration of the idea writing a story of what happened when Ponyboy was sick. When I have an idea, I have to get it down! I really hope you like this chapter! **

**Just one more thing. I really like to play with perspectives a lot, so I have a new way of changing them. When the writing looks like **_this,_** it's in Ponyboy's perspective. When it looks like **this, **it's in Sodapop's perspective. When it looks like **this,**it's in Darry's perspective.**

_I was completely knocked out. Last thing I remember seeing was Dally dying under a streetlight and the ground. I was having a dream, though, where everything was alright. Mom, Dad, Dally, and Johnny were all alive, and it was tuff. We were in the country. The sun was shining, everyone was happy, with no worries. I was lying in the grass, watching the clouds pass by, smoking a cigarette. Then, Johnny joined me. _

"_Hey," He said. _

"_Hi," I replied. _

"_Pass me a cigarette, will you?" He asked me, so I tossed the packet to him. "Thanks," _

"_No trouble," I told him. "Lie down with me?" _

"_Sure," We watched the clouds pass by for a few minutes when Soda came by. _

"_Hey, guys. Enjoying yourselves?" He asked. I just nodded, and so did Johnny. "Can I join you?" He asked. _

"_Sure. Wanna cigarette?" I told him. _

"_No thanks, I'll pass. It's nice and warm, eh?" He said, trying to start a conversation. _

"_Yup," I answered. _

"_Uh-huh," Johnny answered. We just lied there quietly, watching the clouds. This was my dream life, alright. I loved it… _

*****

Darry and I stared at each other. Pony had just passed out! We had to do something, fast, but what? All I could think about at this point was death. First that Soc, Bob, then Johnny, then Dally, and now maybe even Ponyboy! What would we do? The look in my eyes said _What now?_ And blast it, I knew it. Before Darry could even have a chance to answer, the fuzz told us something. I couldn't hear, though. I was too absorbed into trying to figure something out.

"What?" I asked them angrily.

"Aren't you greasers, or hoods, or whatever you call yourselves gonna do something about this kid?" One of them asked. I nearly beat the tar outta that guy, calling us 'hoods' and 'greasers'. I wasn't proud of it for the first time since the rumble that night, and it was because of Pony. Shoot, it was because we were greasers that he had gotten kicked in the head and passed out in the first place!

"Anyone got any change?" Darry asked.

"For what?" I asked him.

"A payphone, so we can get him to a hospital!" He answered my idiot question. What else was he gonna do with it, get a cup of coffee and have a jolly ol' time?

"Just a sec," I told him. I thought I might have enough change in my pocket. "How much do ya need?"

"I don't know, maybe… 25 cents?" _25 cents,_ I thought. I get minimum wage, $1.00 per hour, and work 42 hours a week, but my boss often gives me $20-$25 because he thinks I only flirt with the girls. Even though I usually don't get all I deserve, 25 cents was no sweat, even though I usually had to save a lot to keep Pony in school.

"Well, lets see if I have enough change. I don't know why I would have much money with me for goin' to a rumble, but you know me; dumb, and forgetful!" I told him trying to chuckle, as I digged in my jeans pocket. Luckily, I had exactly 25 cents. I gave Darry the money and he ran to the nearest payphone. Meanwhile, I sat by Pony and tried to wake him up. "Pony! Ponyboy!" I kept on shaking him, trying to get him up. Usually, I let him sleep, but not when his life's on the line!

After a minute of trying to get Ponyboy up, Darry came back.

"They have an ambulance coming right now!" Darry panted.

"Okay, that's good," I told Darry. "You guys should probably get some sleep, it's been a rough night for us greasers," I reminded Two-Bit and Steve, who I nearly forgot was there. A few minutes after they went home or to our place, the ambulance came. They put Pony onto a stretcher and carried him in. I didn't know if I could trust these people anymore, after what happened to Johnny.

I went in with Pony and Darry to make sure Pony would be okay. He woke up a couple times, but he seemed to not even notice we were in an ambulance.

"Hey, look Johnny, that cloud looks like Darry. And Soda, that one looks like you!" is all he said. Darry and I looked at each other. I could pretty much read his mind; _He's snapped._ And I thought _Yup, he has. But he's MY snapped brother, and yours too!_ When Pony was asleep again, I stroked his head and told him it would be alright. I don't know if he heard me or not. I wish I knew if he did, and if he didn't, then gosh I sure wish he did…

*****

We were in an ambulance, and Pony was passed out. He totally snapped after Dally died that night. Blast it, that stupid fuzz! They should've known it was a bluff! A stupid, stupid bluff! Sure, when one of us kills a guy, we go to a hearing and then maybe a trial, but when one of them does, they get off easy just because they're cops! It doesn't make sense, I tell you, it just doesn't make sense at all.

It was a tough ride to the hospital, just thinking my brother might die. But we got there eventually, and I could hardly take it watching Pony being wheeled into the hospital. I nearly cried. Nearly. Soda was by his side while they were wheeling Pony in. Meanwhile, I was worrying about the cost for someone to be treated here! If we're not careful, we could be washed out!

I was dying when I was waiting to hear what the heck was wrong with my brother, and it was also killing Sodapop. He just shook his knee impatiently and sucked in his cheeks.

"Hey, Soda, if you're so bored, why don't you sleep? You sure look tired enough." I told him. He had big bags under his eyes, and gosh, I knew I had them, too.

"Darry, it's not that I'm bored. It's that I'm tense and worryin'. This is all doing me something awful, ya dig?" He replied while searching his mind for words to describe how he felt.

"Yeah, I dig, but I also think you're also tired and yawnin'." I told him. He had been yawning so much that I was surprised he hadn't broken his jaw yet.

"Darry, I can't sleep, thinking my brother might die," he told me. That didn't surprise me, though. I was pretty tired, too, but I couldn't sleep either, thinking the same thing as Soda. Man, it would take a lot to get him away from Pony's side when we were allowed to see him.

A little while later, after I went to the bathroom for a few minutes to try to shed a few tears in private, a doctor was talking to Soda, and he had a sad look in his eyes. "Sodapop, what's wrong?" I asked him.

"He's got a pretty bad fever, and he was in shock and had a minor concussion, most likely from when that dang Soc kicked him in the head, and those cuts and bruises didn't help any either," he answered. Ouch. How'd he get that fever, though? I didn't know, and shoot, I didn't care. All I cared about was my brother, and if he lived.

"Can we at least see him, though?" I asked the doctor.

"Yep, you can see him if you want," He answered. Soda got up right away and started running for the elevator.

"Did you tell him what room he's in?" I asked the doctor.

"Yes, he's in room 407," the doctor explained. Then, I ran out just about as quickly as Soda did.

A few minutes later, I ran into room 407, running into Soda holding Ponyboy's hand and talking to him gently.

"Why don't you try talking to him, Darry? He's started to get semi-conscious again, and he wants to know where you are," he explained to me. So, I walked up to Ponyboy and held his hand like Soda had.

"Hey, Ponyboy. How ya' doin'?" I asked him in a very calm voice.

"Hey, Darry. I'm fine. You wanna join us?" he asked. What in the world was he talking about?

"No, I'm fine. What are you doin'?" I asked him.

"We're watching the clouds. Sure you don't wanna join us?" he answered.

"Sure I'm sure." I replied. Then, I kissed his forehead and walked away. I sat down on one of the chairs in that stupid plain, white room.

"Soda, what does that cloud look like to you?" Pony asked Soda while pointing at a random place in the air.

"Well, what does it look like to you?" Soda asked.

"I think it looks like a flower," Pony replied.

"What kind of flower?" Soda asked.

"It obviously looks like a tulip if it's a flower," Pony answered.

"Yeah, I think it does, too," Soda told him.

"Then why'd you ask me what I thought it was?" Pony asked him.

"'Cause I wanted to see if you thought it was what I thought it was," Soda told him. Soda was so clever with Pony.

"Oh, okay. Hey, Johnny, what do you think it looks like?" Pony asked, looking to his left. What was he thinking was happening? "Yeah, I thought you would," Pony said, again to his left. Then, he looked up again and closed his eyes.

"What was that all about?" I asked Soda.

"I think he's having a dream. The doctor said that he's been acting weird a lot," He told me. "He's just been talking about clouds and stuff," he continued. That explained earlier, in the ambulance. We just sat in silence as that stupid Heart Monitor beeped. I wished we were home at that moment.

**A/N: That was my first chapter and I hope you liked it! Please remember to R&R, and if you really, really liked it, don't forget to put it on your faves lists! Keep on checking here for the second chapter very soon!**


	2. No, I DON'T Like Baloney!

**A/N: Hey, people! Not much to say here 'cause I don't KNOW what to say, but just wanna say I REALLY hope you liked my first chapter, and that I also REALLY hope you like my second chapter, too. I finished this in maybe a few hours, non-stop! Well, except for dinner, maybe, but still, I am really clinged to writing for "The Outsiders", so yeah. Enjoy! **

**One more thing… the hospital bill seems pretty low, but I read that things in the 60's were pretty cheap, and I tried to look it up on google and yahoo answers, but I couldn't find an answer, so that's why it's pretty cheap.**

_The sky was beautiful. Darry had just come, and said he didn't want to join us. That's okay, though. He could work out if he wanted to. Sunset was beginning, and it was so beautiful. Johnny and Sodapop left, but I stayed. I wanted to keep on watching the sunset in the country. Golly, was it sure a pretty one. A few minutes later, I heard a very familiar voice… _

"_Hey, Ponyboy," it was Dad! _

"_Hey, Dad!" I said as I hugged him. _

"_So, you still watch the sunset, huh?" he said as he chuckled. "You're the same old boy I used to know, you know that?" he finished as he ruffled my hair._

"_Yeah, I haven't changed all that much," I told him as I shrugged. _

"_Hey, Pony," I heard another voice. It was Mom! _

"_Hi, Mom!" I told her as I hugged her. _

"_Aren't you comin' in for dinner?" she asked. _

"_Okay, I guess…" I hesitated, thinking about the sunset. _

"_There's a window in the dining room, you know. You can watch the sunset from there," my Mom suggested. She was so smart. That was one of the things I liked most about her. _

"_Okay, thanks," I thanked her. As we walked, I breathed in the fresh air. "Ah," I exhaled. We walked across a green field into a white out cozy house with a window that looked into the dining room. The door opened, and I saw to the right a nice lookin' living room with a fireplace and to the left, I saw a dining room with a kitchen behind it. The table was a nice, light brown, and Johnny, Dally, Darry, Sodapop, Steve, and Two-Bit were seated, with the seat at the end of the table facing the widow empty for me. On the dinner table was a nice, big pot of soup, a plate of garlic bread, and some spaghetti. _

_As we were eating, we had really good talks about our days and how wonderful the country was. _

"_Ya know, this is my dream life," I told them. _

"_I'm glad to know that, son," Dad told me. "but as we all know, nothing gold can stay…" _

*****

It was about 11 p.m. until they let us see Pony. He was semi-conscious when I got up there, and then Darry came in and we talked to him until he was asleep again. I stoked his head. I had to make sure he was safe.

After a few minutes, the silence was killing me, so Darry and I talked. "Blast it, Darry, why did we have to do that stupid rumble in the first place?" I asked him.

"We did it and won for Johnny," he reminded me.

"Why did Johnny just have to die? Shoot, why couldn't it have been anyone else, why not…" I paused for a minute to think. "…why not me?"

"Sodapop Curtis, that's crazy saying that you deserved to die instead of anyone else in the gang! Pony and I need you! You help keep us sane! You and Pony can live together without _me_, though…" Darry started.

"Darry, that's crazy! Without you, Pony wouldn't be able to go to school and shoot, you also help to keep things in control and keep us sane, and golly, we would die of starvation without you! My cooking sucks, and Pony's usually last up, so he hardly ever cooks!" I argued.

"That's not true! Your cooking is, uh…" Darry paused for a minute to think. "interesting," he finished.

"Yeah, interestingly BAD," I added.

"Shoot, Sodapop, let's not concentrate on that for now. Let's concentrate on being quieter for Ponyboy," he told me.

After an hour, Darry went to get a snack for us, and to see if we could get Pony to eat anything next time he was semi-conscious. I thought he would be pretty hungry, too. He didn't eat as much as usual at dinner, probably because of that fever. I was also glad that Darry got snacks for the _both_ of us, too, because I was also getting pretty hungry myself, but I didn't want to mention it. I didn't even know if I could eat, sleep, or pretty much do anything until I knew my brother was okay though… or dead.

_But he cant' die_, I thought to myself. He was my only baby brother. I was so jealous of Darry since I was a kid. He could cook, had a pretty good build, had a brain, and he had more than just one baby brother and wasn't a baby brother of anyone.

"I'm back with those snacks I promised," Darry said as he walked in after I was done thinking. There was an energy bar for each of us, and there was also a sandwich for each of us, too. I glared at him, flames in my eyes. "What?" he asked.

"You really think an energy bar and a sandwich is gonna fill him up?" I asked him. "Gosh, Darry, you saw what he had for dinner; he didn't even take any seconds _or_ clean his plate!"

"This is all I could afford, ya dig?" Darry said. "I just found out what it's gonna cost to treat him," he added.

"How much?" I asked him.

"'Bout… 100 bucks," he answered. Shoot, that was a lot for us to give up, with the little I make, and we're already almost always on the edge! All I did after he told me this was drop my jaw. "I know it's a lot, but I'll save up some money and you can, too, and then we'll have all the money we'll need,"

"Well, on the bright side, you don't only get minimum wage, so you get a little more than I do. I would have to save up for four or more weeks!" I said as I chewed on my energy bar. I needed that thing, too. I sure was tired, but I couldn't sleep. "Do we have enough for a coffee, too?" I asked him. I thought that would help us even more to stay up.

"I think I only have enough for a small, but yeah, I think I could get some for the both of us," Darry answered. He walked out the door before I could say thanks, so I stroked Ponyboy's head. This was gonna be a long night, alright.

*****

I was walking down the hallway… again, going to the elevator… again, to get something from downstairs… again. I just got some snacks from downstairs for Sodapop, Ponyboy and I, and now Soda wanted some coffee, too. I'm not surprised, though. We needed to keep our energy up. If my brother would die, I at least wanted to be awake to say goodbye when it happened… and to tell him I was sorry for all the times I yelled at him, and to say I loved him. Just for the record, I am NOT a softie, or actin' like a Soc, or actin' like a Soc that was a softie. A Softie Soc. Yeah, that's tuff, I'll throw that on a Soc next time we get jumped.

Speaking of Soc's, I overheard some Soc's while I was getting that coffee.

"Shoot, we're _so_ gonna get those stupid greasers back!" one of them said, pounding his fist on the table he was sitting at.

"Yeah, we're gonna get them back for killing Bob _and_ beatin' us in that rumble!" another one said. I bet they wanted me to hear them that. I tried to hold down and ignore them, but let me tell you, that was real hard. I just shifted around a little and told myself to keep it easy. Maybe if I cut up some tires I could blow off some steam… especially if they were _their_ tires. All I had to do was look for a mustang or a corvair and flatten those tires, and maybe even ruin it in different ways…

After I was done thinking about that, the coffee was ready, so I took some of those straw things to stir with and went upstairs. When I got to Ponyboy's room, Soda was desperately shaking him.

"Soda! Soda, what's wrong?" I asked him in a panicky way.

"He was just semi-conscious, and I tried to get him to eat something, but he just said he didn't like baloney and it wasn't _even_ baloney! I was trying to tell him it wasn't baloney when he fell asleep again! He has to eat _something_…" he answered, also in a panic.

"Whoa, Soda! We'll get him something to eat when he's semi-conscious again, okay? For now though, just take some coffee and shut that trap of yours, okay?" I reassured him as I passed him a cup.

"Okay, okay fine!" he said, half playfully as he took his coffee. He took a sip of it before I even had the chance to say it was still hot. "Ow! Darry, why didn't you tell me this was still hot? I'll burn my tongue off one of these days if you don't remember to tell me…"

"You took it and drank it so fast I never had the chance!" I defended as I shrugged and chuckled a little bit..

"Okay, okay!" he said, playfully again as he put it on the bedside table beside Pony, who was peacefully asleep. I wondered if he still didn't know what was going on. I was totally out of it until Soda was shaking me like he had to Pony earlier. "Darry!" he said in another panic. Man, was he sure jumpy that night.

"What?" I said as I shook my head and was back in the real world.

"Darry, what do you think is gonna happen to him? Do you think he's gonna…" he paused as he gulped. "die?"

"No, he can't die! What would we do without him?" I tried to reassure him.

"That's what Johnny was like too, though! You got anything else?" he asked me.

"Well…" I thought. The odds _were_ pretty much against us, but I had to try to reassure him. "well, let's make up an example of say… 30% of people who come to the hospital with… with really bad allergies about right now survive, so there must be something like that for what Ponyboy has, too. So, some people have to be on the positive part of the percent, even if it's only somethin' like 30%, so he might be on that side of things, ya dig?" I said, trying to reassure him again.

"Okay, I dug the part that you wanted me to dig, at least, so, that's good," he said, calmer than he was before and smiling. He started to stroke Pony's head again, telling him it would be alright. I didn't know if he was trying to convince Pony, himself, or me that. I sure was trying to say that to myself.

I've been so jealous of Soda since I was a kid. He's so easily calm with no short temper, Ponyboy loves him, and… he's not the oldest. Gosh, let me tell you it's so hard being the oldest, especially when your parents are dead. All the responsibility falls onto you. Everyone expects you to do everything to help the family. It's just so… hard.

We drank our coffee after he finished telling Pony everything would be alright and finished our sandwiches. After a few minutes, Ponyboy was semi-conscious again.

"Hey, Ponyboy," Soda said softly.

"Hey, Soda. How do you like dinner so far?" Pony asked.

"It's real good. Hey, do you want this sandwich?" Soda asked him, waving his in front of his face.

"No thanks. I don't like baloney," Ponyboy said, turning his head.

"What about this energy bar?" Soda asked him.

"I already said no, I don't like baloney," Pony said, a bit angrily this time.

"Are ya sure?" Soda asked him.

"Yes, I'm sure," Pony told him, again angrily, before he went back to sleep.

"See, I told you," Soda said, obviously upset. "He won't eat anything!"

"Whoa, that sure is weird," I told him, not sure of what say.

After about an hour or so of talking and trying to get Ponyboy to eat something else and just hearing 'No, I don't like baloney!', the coffee energy started to wear out, and Soda and I were worn out.

"Golly, I'm so tired I can't keep my eyes open, Darry. I have to go to sleep," Soda said, drowsily.

"Yeah, me too. Let's settle down, okay, little buddy?" I said to Soda, just as drowsily as he did. We used three chairs each to make a bed for the both of us. I was so dang tired that I didn't mind sleeping on those hard, hard chairs.

*****

We went to sleep at 'bout 1 a.m., but I could only sleep 'till 3 a.m. and I was so tired. While Darry was still asleep, I stroked Pony's head again. His forehead sure did feel HOT. If it was any hotter, I would've gotten a first-degree burn, I'm pretty sure. This sure was doing me something awful.

A minute later, Ponyboy started to get semi-conscious again.

"Hey, Pony. You still doin' okay there?" I asked him very quietly, remembering that Darry was still asleep.

"Yeah, I'm good." He said in response. I tried to get him to eat again, but he just said he didn't like baloney… again. Then, he fell asleep.

_How come he thinks I'm trying to feed him baloney?_ I thought as I sighed in grief. I thought about that for a minute, trying to guess, until I heard a gurgling sound coming from Pony's direction. I looked at him, and he was okay, so I put my ear against his stomach, and I could hear that gurgle again. _So he is hungry, he just doesn't know it. _I thought. I felt a little empty inside myself, but not from hunger. I missed them. I missed Ponyboy, Johnny, and Dally. I felt very alone at that moment, at least until Darry woke up.

"Darry?" I asked.

"What? Oh, hey Sodapop. What was that gurgling sound?" he asked, half asleep.

"That? Oh, that was Ponyboy's stomach. I tried to get him to eat again, but he still 'aint eatin'," I told him.

"Oh, okay. I wonder why he isn't eatin' and thinking everything we try to get him to eat is baloney," he thought out loud.

"Yeah, I don't know either," I told him. "I can barley take it, seeing him like this. It's killing me, ya dig?" I told him, trying to start a conversation to avoid the awkward silence from the hospital.

"Yeah, I'm trying hard not to cry," Darry added.

"Why?" I asked him.

"'Cause, twenty years on the East Side, you learn things," he told me.

"Well what about when Pony told us that Johnny died? I cried then, and Dally cried in the hospital. And what about at the hospital after that old church burned down in Windrixville? You cried then," I asked him.

"Yeah, that, well… Johnny was his buddy, as well as ours. When a buddy dies, you're allowed to cry, and when I cried, I was tired," he tried to answer angrily, his hands in fists. I wished he didn't use the word 'die'. It reminded me too much of Mom and Dad. It still does.

"Oh, okay then, that answers my question, I guess," I said awkwardly and quietly, holding back tears. He loosened.

"Hey, I'm sorry, Soda. It's just killin' me so much, that I'm gettin' pretty upset in an angry way, too. And besides, I don't want to talk about Johnny," he said calmly.

"Oh, no, it's not just that. I'm also upset because of the word 'die' because it…" I paused, trying to force the words out. "it reminds me too much of Mom and Dad." I finally finished.

"Oh, Pepsi-Cola, I didn't wanna say that word 'cause of that either. Do ya wanna hug or… somethin'?" he asked me. Strange… he didn't seem to be the hugging type, and he rarely calls me the nickname Dad gave me. I was holdin' back tears too much to say 'yes', so I just nodded and he gave me a hug. I'm just so sick and tired of this world, with all of this bad stuff happening all the time. It's just not fair for us greasers, nothin' is.

*****

Soda and I went to sleep at 'bout 1 a.m. in the morning, and I don't know when Soda got up, but I got up at 'bout 3 a.m., and you know what woke me up? Ponyboy's stomach, that's what. Just another thing to worry about. That tanks.

At about 6 a.m., Soda and I started getting a little hungry, so I went down and ordered two breakfast bagels. It was all we could afford, with the bill we would have to pay for this hospital. It was $100 for Pony to be treated. We're already living on the edge, and this stupid hospital is just making it worse. When I got back up, a doctor was talking to Soda again. Why did _I_ always miss everything?

"Soda, what's goin' on?" I asked him.

"They say we can take him home now, as long as we try to keep him cool," he answered me. Well, at least we could go home.

"Thank you, doctor," I told the doctor. What I really wanted to say 'why do your blasted bills cost so much?' but I was smart and kept my mouth shut.

"Wait a sec…" Soda said out of the blue. "Darry! We don't have a way home!" Shoot! That's what we get for calling for an ambulance!

"We can get an ambulance, but it'll add to your bill," the doctor suggested. He just seemed to want more money, but then again, we couldn't just take an unconscious guy on the public bus. Knowing we're hoods, they'd probably think we'd killed somebody!

"Okay, fine. We'll use the ambulance," I told him. "How much will our bill be then?"

"About 125 dollars," the doctor said. Blast it, that was a lot, but we didn't have any choice!

We used the ambulance and got home faster than we would on the bus, probably because they got the lights to flash as if it was an emergency. Whatever, though. I didn't care, as long as it got us home.

By the time we were home, I carried Ponyboy into his bed and opened the window and got some frozen peas we only used for injuries over his forehead to put down his temperature. It helped a little, but not by that much. When we checked his temperature later, it was 101 degrees.

"It's been goin' down a little bit," Soda said, trying to look on the bright side.

"Yeah, but it's not enough," I told him, finally looking at the harsh reality.

"Look on the bright side, Darry," Soda started. "at this rate, he'll be normal in a day or two,"

"Yeah, okay," I gave in. I was about to find something out that I never expected, though…

**A/N: I really wanna know what you guys think of this frankly really long chapter, which I'm very sorry about. I knew exactly where I wanted to drop off, but couldn't figure out how to, so this one turned out pretty long. So anyways, please tell me what you think through a review, but please, no flames!**


	3. At Home With Hungry and Tired Monkeys

**A/N: I don't know what to say. OH NO!!!!!!!!!! Nothin' to say except for… **

**Remember, I'm not S.E. Hinton, so I don't own the outsiders! *whispers to self 'darn'* **

**Remember to R&R, please!! Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty *says 'pretty' about a million more times* PPLLEEAASSEE!! **

**And... **

**-!!WARNING- A LITTLE BIT OF RANDOMNESS IN THIS CHAPTER!!-**

The hospital sent us home, and I was sure glad of that. I wanted to see home again and not have to hear that stupid Heart Monitor again. It just went _beep beep beep…_ it was awful hard to sleep like that. Yet at the same time, I slept like a baby. Peacefully… at least, when I did sleep I did.

Ponyboy was still running a slight fever when we got home, so we opened the window and put some frozen peas on his forehead. It went down from 103.2 degrees at the hospital to 101 degrees after we opened the window and put some frozen peas on his forehead. _At least it went down 2.2 degrees,_ I thought, trying to look on the bright side. We went to the point of desperate and took off the blankets on him, and he was practically freezin' to death from the looks of it, but it was all we could do.

I decided to skip work until he was feeling better, or died… but I tried not to think about that. Darry stayed home, too. He called his bosses and yelled at both of them when they tried to get him to come to work anyway. How could his bosses say that when they know perfectly well that our youngest brother might die? All I could do was pace back and forth and suck in my cheeks, like I did at the hospital. I was too anxious to eat, sleep, do anything really, and I only went to the bathroom in emergency, and it may sound gross, but I just couldn't leave Pony's side. I did this all day, and wasn't expecting to see any of the gang. I thought that they would just go out and sob about all this, but Two-Bit came over. Shoot, he didn't even take his car! He just ran over here drowsily. I could see him through the window looking out of our room, but what did he want at seven in the morning?

"Darry!" he panted urgently. "Darry!"

"Two-Bit, we're up here!" I called down to him, trying to stay as quiet as I could. Darry was sleeping in the armchair he brought up from downstairs. I could hear him running up the stairs, but I couldn't see how he had the energy to. When he busted through the door, I didn't have the chance to tell him not to slam it, but he did, obviously. Darry woke up.

"Huh? What? Where's the fire?" he asked before he was back in the real world. "Oh, hey Two-Bit, how ya doin'?" Darry asked him.

"That's not important right now, guys," he said urgently. "How's the kid?"

"Not good. Last time we checked, his temperature was 101," Dally answered.

"Oh blast it, Darry, it's all my fault," Two-Bit went on. He even started to cry a little.

"What is?" Darry asked.

"The kid… he was runnin' a fever before the rumble…" he said between pants and tears.

"When did you notice?" Darry asked seriously. I looked at Two-Bit with a little anger and confusion, I knew it, and so did he.

"At the bus stop yesterday, after we went to see Johnny," he explained between more pants and tears. "Shoot, I told him he shouldn't fight in the rumble, but he said that he'd take a few aspirins and he'd be alright, and blast it, I shouldn't have let him talk me into not telling you…"

"Oh blast it, I'm gonna kill that kid!" Darry said between clenched teeth, his hand in a fist.

"Darry!" I said urgently. "I know you don't really mean it, but I just wanna say don't hurt him, okay? He's been through enough already, what with Johnny killin' that guy, the church, you hittin' him, two of his pals dying… Darry, we've all been through a lot lately,"

"Okay, yeah sure, but I'll yell at him or give him a speech or somethin'…"

"NO! Don't get mad at him, okay? We don't want all of this to happen again, and he just wanted to help, Darry. He just wanted to fight to get back at those Soc's. Blast it, just admit it, Darry, we needed all the help we could get, and you know what? Every greaser helped," I said, trying to convince him not to do anything to hurt Pony emotionally or physically.

"Alright, fine Soda. You've convinced me," he gave in. I smiled.

"So… am _I_ dead?" Two-Bit asked Darry.

"Oh, Two-Bit, of course you're not!" Darry said, ruffling his hair.

"Oh, good. I could hardly sleep last night just thinking it was all my fault," he told us, then he yawned. "Hey, can I use your couch?" he asked as he slouched and scratched his back.

"Yeah, sure, go ahead!" Darry answered. "I've got an armchair here so you're good!"

"Yup, it's all yours, buddy!" I told him, trying to cheer things up.

I thought Darry would go back to sleep, but he went downstairs with Two-Bit, and I stayed in the bedroom, and kept pacing. Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, I was surprised I didn't get a headache!

A few hours of pacing and watching Pony sleep was killing me, but I didn't know what to do, so I just sat down by Pony and checked his temperature. It was still 101 degrees. _Great,_ I thought sarcastically. _It didn't make a difference._ I sure didn't want to go back to that hospital again.

"Aw, Pony, I hope you get a little better in time…" I told him. That's when the phone rang, and I didn't want Pony to wake up again, so I answered it in two seconds flat. It was Steve.

"Hey, Soda," he said.

"Hey, Steve. How ya doin'?" I whispered into the phone.

"What's up with the hush hushiness puppiness?" He asked me.

"I'm in Pony's and my room, and Pony's sleeping in here," I told him, still whispering.

"Well, let me just ask you something… why aren't you at work?" he asked an idiot question.

"Didn't you even _see_ what happened to my _only_ baby brother last night? I'm staying home today, and until he gets better or dies!" I whispered angrily, trying not to think about death. _He's not gonna die, he's NOT gonna die,_ I thought to myself.

"Well, I sure hope that'll be soon, 'cause we just don't get as many customers here when you're gone," he told me.

"How come I always bring in more customers?" I asked him.

"'Cause of those good looks you bring with you every day! You bring in more girls, man! You're such a chick magnet!" he said sounding as if he was trying to make a joke.

"Oh, shut your trap!" I whispered, more angrily than before. I didn't know why I was so angry at Steve, my buddy… maybe it's because he reminded me about the girls, and I didn't want to talk about the girls who crowded me all the time even when I _asked_ for space.

"Whoa, Soda! Hold your horses, okay?" Steve said awkwardly.

"Why didn't you call me earlier if you were wondering where the heck I was?" I asked, still mad at him.

"'Cause boss only lets us use call on break, remember?" he told me. I glanced at my watch. It was 1:00 p.m., break time. "Wanna get lunch with me?"

"No, I'm making sure Pony's okay," I told him, then hung up. It was truthfully a hard decision, though, 'cause I skipped breakfast and yet didn't want to leave Pony's side. My stomach reminded me of that in response by growling. "Oh, you shut your trap!" I said. _Oh, shoot, now I've snapped!_ I thought as I clenched my stomach. I was feeling too nauseous to eat anything, though. I had a big knot in my stomach.

"Wow, didn't know you were _that_ crazy!" I heard Darry's familiar voice.

"Oh, crap, don't tell anyone I said that, okay?" I asked him.

"Yeah, okay. I know it'll ruin your rep," he told me. I smiled. "But here's an idea; eat!" he added cheerfully

"Oh, shoot Darry, I can't! I'm feeling too nauseous to eat; I've got a big knot in my stomach!" I explained to him.

"If you're gonna act like that, Pony's not gonna be the only one losing weight around here, is he?" he joked. I grinned in response "Well, let's not talk about that right now. How's Pony doin'?" he asked me.

"Not good. There's been no difference since we last checked," I told him, thinking about the 101 degrees it seemed to want to stay at.

"Man, we'd better start getting' that down!"

"Let's see if those peas have warmed up any," I suggested

"Alright, I will," Darry said as he checked them. "Man, they have! This 'aint gonna help," He said as he chucked it on the chair. "Let's get his socks and shoes off too, for petes sake!" he kept on going on and on takin' off his shoes and socks, but left the rest on to keep him at body temperature. "He'll get cold with that t-shirt on, though, so I'll put these blankets on him," he continued.

"Blast it, Darry, you should go to nursing school!" I joked.

"Yeah, yeah," he mumbled playfully. That Darry, a jokester _and_ a nurse! I wished Pony was awake to see that.

*****

It was about 1 p.m. and Pony's fever didn't go down at all, so I took off his socks and shoes and took those peas off his forehead, which had warmed up. Remembering how I feel when I'm sick, I pulled some blankets over him. He had been shivering anyway. After that, he woke up.

"Darry?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's me. What do ya want?" he asked.

"Oh, nothin' really. Do ya like dinner so far?" he asked. First clouds, now dinner!

"It's good. Do ya want some chocolate cake from the icebox?" I asked, remembering how we all loved chocolate.

"Again? I already told you guys, I DON'T LIKE BALONEY!" he said angrily to me. I felt awful. Was that how he felt when I shouted at him? Before I could apologise, he fell back to sleep again. That's when I realised I hadn't had anything to eat yet either. I felt just like Soda, though. Nauseous. My stomach growled.

"Just shu-" I started, then looked at Soda, who had crossed his arms and was looking at me in a playful way that said _Remember when you said __I__ was crazy? _"Yeah, yeah, I know. Let's agree on something; we won't tell _anyone_ about this for _any_ of us, okay?" I asked him.

"Yeah, okay, but…" Soda started as he shrugged. Oh, no. "you have to… dance around like a monkey!" he told me. "Dare ya!"

"Shoot, okay I will," I decided. I thought I might as well make _one_ of us happy, so I bounced around and scratched my head. I also made those 'ooh ooh' and 'aah aah' monkey sounds, and then I heard some of those sounds behind me, too. Soda was laughing like crazy, and I looked behind me. There was good ol' Two-Bit, dancing around like a monkey like I just had. I couldn't help but laugh, too. We all had a good laugh. When I turned around again, Soda was on the floor, crying and laughing. "Now _you_ have to do that, too," I dared him.

"Sure, I will. Heck, it might be fun," he said as he shrugged playfully and danced around and made those sounds, too. Two-Bit and I laughed like heck and fell on the floor crying. That was probably the first time we had laughed that hard since Saturday night.

About an hour later, some reporters and even some of the fuzz came. When they knocked on the door, Soda sighed and said he'd get it. After he opened the door, I saw about twelve million dozen reporters and about a dozen members of the fuzz. They were all asking questions like crazy at the same time so annoying that I got a headache.

"Uh… Darry, I think it's for you…" Soda said nervously and I've got to admit, a bit scared. When I walked up in front of Soda, the reporters backed up in fear, and either because of the way I looked or my muscles I couldn't tell. They recovered in a few seconds and started asking _me_ questions like crazy.

"Is your brother dying?"

"Why isn't he still in the hospital?"

"What's wrong with him?"

"Is he hurt?"

"How did he get hurt?"

"Why do you look so awful?" and at that comment, I took a threatening step toward them to scare them.

"You know what? I'm gonna ask all you a question now; WHY ARE YOU SO ANNOYING?" I yelled at them. I then put my hands in fists and breathed through my nose angrily. I think they got the message because just like that, they left. I did the same with the fuzz, too, and they ran just as fast as the reporters. I could feel not only my ears but my whole face heating up and reddening.

"Darry, I think that you're even scarier when you're tired! Not that I'm ever scared of you, though. I know you would never hurt your family, right?" Soda told me.

"Yeah, I would never hurt you guys," I answered him.

"Oh, yeah? Then what about when you hit Pony a week ago?" he pointed out. He was right. Why _did_ I hit Pony that night?

"I-I… I don't even _know_ why I hit him that night. Sure, I was worried, but I don't think it was that…" I thought out loud. Soda came to hug me. I instantly felt better about myself. "Thanks, Soda," I thanked him after he was done.

"Oh, no problem, Darry. That's what I do, after all," he said.

The rest of the day was pretty boring, just lounging around, checking Ponyboy's temperature, which has lowered to 95.3 degrees. That night, though… that night was much different.

**A/N: YAY!! I'm almost done my first outsiders story!! Only one more chapter left, and I can't wait to hear what you think!! Remember to R&R, please! ;D**


	4. A Sudden Nightmare

**A/N: YAY! My last chapter! Please enjoy!**

_I nearly spat my food up after what my Dad had just said. "What do you mean by 'nothing gold can stay'? What does that have to do with this life?" _

"_This is all a dream, remember? No dream can stay…" my Dad replied. I was suddenly scared of his answer and of this dreamed-up life. _

"_You don't remember again, Ponyboy?" my Mom asked. I shook my head. Then, I saw a car out the window, speeding up to it. Mom and Dad turned to see what I was staring at and then turned back to me with tears running down their eyes and their smiles vanished. _

"_We love you, Ponyboy, Sodapop, and Darry," they said in unison as they waved, then the car hit them and both the car and they faded away. And that's when I realised. _

_This was the dream I had after Mom and Dad died._

_I wanted to wake up and be out of this so called dream life already. It wasn't even a dream life after all. It was a nightmare life. I wanted to forget all about this dream… or nightmare. Whatever it was, I wanted to get out of it already. But I couldn't wake up. I couldn't go back. _

_After Mom and Dad faded away, everything was dark. All was black. I was frantic. I tried to run, but I could only feel my muscles twitching and not moving an inch. My feet were like bricks on the ground. I just froze. I called out for help. Nothing. Voices, mocking me were all around me instead. _

"_Just shove off, kid!" _

"_Yeah, hood!" _

"_They're never coming back to you. Never!" _

"_They don't love you!" _

"_Yes, they do!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. _

"_No, they don't! Nobody does!" _

"_That's not true! My family and the gang both love me!" I screamed back._

"_Then why aren't they doing anything for you right now?" _

"_They probably can't move like I can't!" _

"_They can move, and they aren't moving to you!" then, a light came before me and I saw all the horror. There were shadows, living shadows all over and each individual member of the gang was running around like crazy. Then, there was a fire around Johnny, and he fell to his face. _

"_My back… I can't feel my back…" he yelped. Then, he turned white and died. _

"_NO! Johnny, please don't die! You're the only thing I love!" Dally called out to him. Still, Johnny was dead. "If you die, then I die!" Dally said as he took out the gun he used for a bluff and pointed it to some men that looked like they were from the fuzz with red, glowing eyes. I watched helplessly as he was shot to death. _

_Darry then started yelling at me. "It's all your fault!" he said, looking straight at me. _

"_No! I didn't want all of this to happen in the first place!" I called back to him. Then, my throat felt like ice and I couldn't shout. _

"_Yes you did! You never think about anything except for this!" then, he faded away. Two-Bit was then talking to me. _

"_If you had just done what you were told for once…" he said sadly as he was blown away like dust. Then it was Steve. _

"_You stupid kid! If you would just listen to one of your brothers for once… just once…" he said before he fell to the ground and faded away. Next, Soda looked at me, sadness in his eyes. _

"_Gosh, Pony, I don't know what to say," he said before he disappeared too. _

"_NO! Why are they gone?" I cried to nowhere. Then, the shadows and the fuzz with red eyes turned to me and stared crowding around me. I covered my face with my hands. "NO! Darry, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not doing what I'm told! I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused! Darry, please help me! PLEASE!" _

*****

It was about 11:00 p.m. and I was nearly wiped out. I was losing energy from just blinking. I had to stay awake, though. _Stay awake for Ponyboy,_ I thought to my self. _Stay awake for Pony._

I decided to just lie down beside him for something to do. When I wrapped my arm around him, I felt a moist shirt and a shaking body. I took his temperature, which was 99 degrees. His fever had gone down, and yet he was sweating like… like… like after those dreams he had, about Mom and Dad. I didn't want to wake him up, though, so I kept my arm around him, thinking it would comfort him.

His breathing then became faster and faster. "Yes, they do!" he yelled. That was really loud; I thought it broke my eardrums. A minute later, he screamed again. "That's not true! My family and the gang both love me!" At that point I was trying to wake him up.

"Pony? Ponyboy, wake up! Pony!" I nearly yelled in his ear while shaking him to death. He didn't respond. Then, after a few seconds, he started again.

"They probably can't move like I can't!" he called. Then, he started screaming.

"PONYBOY! WAKE UP!" I was yelling to his face, which was red and sweaty. He started yelling again.

"No! I didn't want all of this to happen in the first place!" his breathing was then very hoarse. That's when Darry came busting through the door.

"What's goin' on?" he asked.

"I don't know! He's just yellin' outta nowhere!" I told him. "Gosh, Pony, I don't know what to say," I then whispered to him, explaining that for once I didn't know what to say to him. In two seconds flat, he started the scary stuff again.

"NO! Why are they all gone?" and then five more seconds later, he started it again. "NO! Darry, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not doing what I'm told! I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused! Darry, please help me! PLEASE!" I looked at Darry, panic in my eyes.

*****

It was 11:00 p.m. and Pony was screaming like he was being attacked by a wild animal. He asked for me, so I went up to him.

"Pony! What is it?" I asked him in a panicky way.

"Get them away from me! Darry, please help!" he screamed to me. I then went across the room and threw some books on the floor and made some grunting sounds as I pretended to beat someone up. "Darry, I'm so sorry for all the things I've done to make you angry!" he yelped as I was doing this.

"Don't worry, buddy, it's okay," I reassured him, pretending to pant. Then I asked him if I'd got 'them' all.

"Yes, yes I think you have. Come here, Darry!" he said. He gave me a hug. After I walked away, I asked Soda if he wanted the light on at all.

"Yeah, sure. Maybe I won't feel so tired then if I think it's day!" he replied as he sat on the bed. Before I walked out, Pony woke up. After few seconds of him looking at Soda blankly, he started to talk.

"Soda…" he said in a weak, hoarse voice. "is somebody sick?" he seemed to not be having a dream anymore, at least.

"Yeah," Soda replied in a gentle voice. "Go back to sleep now,"

"Am _I_ sick?" Pony asked him. Soda stroked his hair like he had about a million times since he fainted.

"Yeah, you're sick. Now be quiet,"

"Is Darry sorry I'm sick?" he asked him. I nearly said 'yes', but Soda answered for me.

"Yeah, he's sorry you're sick. Now please shut up, will ya honey? Go back to sleep," after Pony went back to sleep again, Soda turned to me. "You've been a good brother, Darry," he told me.

"You have, too," I told him. I finally felt relaxed and fell asleep on the armchair.

**A/N: Now my story is FINISHED! *bows to the wonderful crowd* Thank you! Thank you! You know what would make me even HAPPIER? *crowd replies by saying 'no'* If you R&R! Pretty pretty please? ;D oh, and just one more thing… **

**YYYYAAAAYYYY!!!!**


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